TOBA February Member of the Month

For Robert and Lawana Low, 2021 is flying by like Pegasus, one might say. At the April 2019 OBS Sale of Two-Year-Olds in Training, they bought a handsome son of Liam's Map  for $1.2 million. Named Colonel Liam, he blossomed at three, closing out 2020 by winning the Dec. 26 Tropical Park Derby. That win set Colonel Liam up nicely for his seasonal debut—a win in the Jan. 23 Pegasus World Cup Turf Invitational Stakes (G1T) at Gulfstream Park.

Based in Springfield, Missouri, the Lows were thrilled with their colt’s four-year-old bow. “We got down there,” Robert Low mused, “and we had a group of friends, too, and so that always makes it better. And yeah, it was just absolutely a blast.” Colonel Liam is set to make his next start in the March 20 Muniz Memorial Classic (G2T) at Fair Grounds.

Colonel Liam’s turf talent wasn’t expected. “Obviously a very pleasant surprise, I’ve got to say,” Low said. “We were disappointed with his first two dirt starts; we just knew he was more horse than that.” In 2020, he moved to the grass. “We’ve got to hand it to [trainer] Todd [Pletcher],” Low added. “He got it all figured out and well, it’s been great.” After posting a sparkling 2 ¾-length victory in a Saratoga allowance last summer, Colonel Liam headed to the Aug. 15 Saratoga Derby Invitational Stakes, where he ran a close fourth—a head, half-length, and another head—behind the first three finishers. 

The Lows are nurturing another turf star in Sweet Melania. “She’s a sweetheart,” Low said, “and she’s getting a little freshening right now but is starting to breeze back so we’re very hopeful for her.” The filly made her mark at two. “She went into the [JPMorgan Chase] Jessamine Stakes [G2T] at Keeneland,” said Low, “and wow, she just lit it up. I think she won by five or so [five-and-a-half lengths], you know, really just got away from them.” Third in the 2019 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1T), the daughter of American Pharoah  annexed the 2020 Wonder Again Stakes (G3T).

Raised on a farm, Low grew up around horses. “My parents were race fans,” he recalled, “and my dad especially, so got to go to the races at an early age. And we started going as young adults and I told Lawana, you know, if we ever hit the big time, I’d buy her a racehorse. So, we got lucky and it worked out. You know, the good thing about dreams sometimes is that they do come true.”

The Lows bought their first horse in 1994. The following year, they purchased a Capote filly; named Capote Belle, she earned $603,315 and won the 1996 Test Stakes (G1). It’s hard to find another star, but Low remains philosophical. Of the successes, he said, “You just really have to savor it and take it all in and enjoy it, and we certainly did that.” 

With such highs come the inevitable lows. The Lows were thrilled when their Magnum Moon blazed the 2018 Triple Crown trail. He captured the 2018 Rebel Stakes (G2) and Arkansas Derby (G1) at Low’s home track of Oaklawn Park. One of the favorites for that year’s Kentucky Derby (G1), Magnum Moon didn’t run to form and was retired after a morning workout injury. Despite the best care from Cornell Ruffian Equine Specialists Hospital, he died from laminitis complications in 2019. “I mean, he handled it all with class and dignity,” Low recalled. “He just never had a bad day, never got soured out, even though he was bandaged up and confined to the stall.” He added, “But the horse was just incredibly courageous through that whole experience and he took good care of himself, and it just wasn’t meant to be.” He hopes to return to Churchill Downs on the first Saturday in May 2021, to watch Colonel Liam run in the Woodford Reserve Turf Classic Stakes (G1T). 

Owners of 12 broodmares, the Lows live on their Missouri farm. The president and founder of trucking company Prime Inc., Low levies his transportation expertise to care for his mares, sending them to be bred and bringing them home. Living alongside their beloved animals is a dream come true. “We’re really fortunate,” he contemplated, “and so it’s a great setting for us; like you said, we’ve been able to watch them in the paddock, watch the babies grow up. We have 11 yearlings here now at the farm; we have a good crew, good farm manager, and you know, it’s great.”